Yōichi Hiruma
is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Eyeshield 21. His Japanese voice actor is Atsushi Tamura (listed in the anime credits as Atsushi Tamura of London Boots #1 and #2). Overview When a * Official Site popularity poll of the Eyeshield 21 characters was conducted, Hiruma ranked number 1, unusual in a Jump manga, where the main character usually ranks first. In a following poll for the Dream Eleven, in which a team of eleven was created via a popularity poll of characters and their positions, Hiruma was the only character to receive not only over twice as many votes as the second-place finisher, Kid, but more votes than all the other candidates combined -- Hiruma with 9196 votes, and all the other quarterbacks with a total of 6971 votes.Eyeshield 21 manga; 211th Down, pg. 1-2. The latest ES21 poll, to form All-Freshmen and All-Seniors (and in Deimon's case, All-Sophomores) teams, saw Hiruma come out on top here as well, with a total of 3968 votes.Eyeshield 21 manga; 258th Down, pg. 1-2. Riichiro Inagaki, writer of Eyeshield 21, said that "all the characters" were his favorite characters, and that Hiruma is "especially" his favorite.Shonen Jump. Volume 4, Issue 2. February 2006. VIZ Media. 15. Conception and development Inagaki said that he developed Hiruma as a character that does not follow the Japanese concept of emphasis on sportsmanship and effort in the game; instead Hiruma is "only concerned with winning." Inagaki intended to make an "anti-hero" or, as he refers to the concept, a "devil-hero." Yusuke Murata, the artist, said that he every character design has to have a distinct quality as many characters are in groups and each one has to stand out; Murata chose to portray Hiruma as looking "close to being a demon" since he heard from Inagaki that Hiruma had "the personality of a demon." Background with his machine gun]] Hiruma is the mastermind, quarterback and de facto captain of Deimon's American Football club. He has pointy ears, sharp teeth, and looks and acts like a demon. His signature phrase is a loud "YA-HA", sometimes ended with a "TOUCHDOWN!". Hiruma is usually carrying some kind of firearm (usually concealed), including but not limited to flamethrowers, submachine guns, assault rifles (usually an M4A1 Carbine) or bazookas, which he fires mostly for intimidation. However, he has also used them for training purposes, such as shooting behind players to get them to run pass routes. Hiruma was the first person to recognize Sena Kobayakawa's talent for running and dodging. He also owns a very vicious dog named - named for the triple-headed hell hound Cerberus that guards the gates of Hades. He often uses the dog to scare team members into running faster. Hiruma discovered football by chance; wandering around his hometown, he discovered a hole in a gate of an American military base where the soldiers were playing football for leisure. Befriending the soldiers on the base, he also instantly learned the strategies of playing poker, allowing him to become rich quick. Eventually Hiruma would meet his two most notable partners in crime by chance: Kurita after accidentally dropping a football strategy page from the roof of his middle school where he was relaxing, and Musashi when he was called in to fix the gate to the American base after Hiruma sneaked in again for another game with the soldiers. Eventually the trio would work together to become a football force: first by attempting to join the Shinryuji Naga (of which Hiruma and Musashi got in but abandoned due to both Kurita's failure on the entrance exam and the arrogance of fellow incoming freshman Agon Kongo) and eventually at Deimon High. The Devil Bats' quarterback's main drive is to win the championship & make it to Japan's Christmas Bowl; but there is an underlying reason for all his schemes. Unlike other schools, Deimon has a rule that all its students must cease their extracurricular activities after the fall of their 2nd year, including the sports clubs. For both Hiruma and Kurita, this is their last chance with the football team. Personality Hiruma follows all of the rules and does not cheat; Inagaki says that Hiruma "does everything else to win" and is "only concerned with winning." Hiruma has the "Book of Threats" (Devil's Handbook in the Japanese version), a small black notebook filled with secrets, which allows him to blackmail anyone into doing what he says. The rest of his information, incriminating or otherwise, which he accumulates from scouting on other teams, is stored in his laptop computer. He is also a very good hacker, and also kind of expert in surveillance technology and intelligence (he manages to fill his Devil Handbook mostly using a spy cam hidden anywhere, and forces anyone who caught by him to "help" him fill the book by spying on other people he wishes) . Hiruma has another side as well, which only Mamori Anezaki, Kurita, Musashi, and the team's coach can recognize. Characters more familiar with Hiruma have commented that his appearance and demeanor are tactical decisions, meant to surprise and distract. The line between the "presented Hiruma" and the "real Hiruma" has become a theme in the series, usually through Mamori's interactions with him. Though at first antagonized, Mamori and Hiruma seem to have gained an understanding of one another. Hiruma kept Suzuna from going to Mamori when she was upset, saying that she "wasn't that type of woman". During and after the Death March, Mamori was the only one to recognize that Hiruma was fatigued like the rest of the team. In Chapter 205 during a rest day, Mamori speaks to him more about his tendency to put up a front about his true feelings and how he really doesn't believe that wining is everything, and saying that the reason he does it is because he's afraid of being let down. Mamori's ability to understand Hiruma (as well as everybody else) on and off the field, which has lead other characters (especially Suzuna, Doboroku sensei, Monta, and Kuroki) to mistakenly believe they are dating. In chapter 170, when Riko was interviewing each football team's ace, she asked what kind of girl Hiruma liked, to which Hiruma replied "'A girl I can use!'" and to which Riko thought "'That's the requirements of a manager I'm telling you!'" This somewhat emphasized the Hiruma-Mamori relationship. The team tryout consisted of carrying bags of ice to the top of Tokyo Tower before they melted. Manabu Yukimitsu, despite his weakness, frailty, and having his ice stolen by another contender (who was quickly taken care of by Hiruma shortly after), keeps trying and eventually reaches the top. Unfortunately, by that time his ice has melted, but after seeing how much Yukimitsu strained his body to keep going, Hiruma slips in an ice cube so Yukimitsu will make the team, showing another glimse of the "real" Hiruma. When Daikichi Komusubi ran away because he thought he would not be any help at the Poseidon game due to his height, Hiruma nearly goes ballistic with worry - disguised as anger - and prints dozens of missing posters to find him. Also, in chapter 240, he lies on purpose to prevent the Hah brothers from entering the restroom and disturbing Takami in his post-game mourning. He also helped Marco to stand after being crushed by Kurita in the game against Dinosaurs, paying him some respect as player who will do anything to win. Hiruma, however, has a very different relationship with Musashi, keeping track of how "late" he is (13,297 hours and 49 minutes or to make him look smart), keeping Musashi's kick tee in perfect condition ("Even the dust remains unchanged"), not pursuing a replacement kicker even though it stood as the fatal flaw for the Devil Bats and crying (with laughter and both guns firing) when Musashi makes his first field goal after returning to the team. Musashi also seems to be the only one that Hiruma does not threaten with violence, and Musashi (along with Mamori) is also the only one that has the guts to oppose Hiruma's decisions (at one point, Musashi had actually punched Hiruma, but this turned out to be an act). Though it may be unlikely, he may consider Musashi both as a friend, and a subsitute father, the fact being that Musashi is more mature, and gives him wise advice. When Hiruma kicks a player in the rear without saying anything, it is his way of praising the person for a job well done. He also gives nicknames to many people, usually using the prefix "Damn", "Freakin'" or "Fucking" in the original manga, though it was edited in the anime and English release; "Fucking Shorty" or "Fucking Secretary" = Sena; "Fucking Monkey" = Monta; "Fucking Manager" = Mamori; "Fucking Brothers" = Ha-Ha Brothers; "Fucking Baldy" = Yukimitsu; "Fucking Fatty" = Kurita; "Fucking Fatty Jr." = Komusubi; "Fucking Old Man" = Gen "Musashi" Takekura; "Fucking Beardy" or "Fucking Idiot" = Taki; "Fucking Fishlips" = Kuroki; "Fucking Dreadlocks" = Agon; "Fucking Complete Baldy" = Banba; "Fucking Shiny" = Munakata; "Fucking Red Eyes" = Akaba; "Fucking Broomhead" = Koutarou; "Fucking Eyebrows" = Kid; "Fucking Eyelashes" = Marco; "Fucking Huge Dude" or "Fucking Caveman" = Gaou etc. He also uses "Fucking Brats" when referring to the first year members. The only one he doesn't seem to have a nickname for is Suzuna, who he actually ignores, more or less. There is a mystery surrounding the fact that Hiruma, along with Mamori and Yukimitsu, actually excels in his studies. Although it possibly has to do with blackmail, it is more likely simply due to his exceptional intelligence (Highlighted when Hiruma was able to effortlessly win 20 million yen in a blackjack game). It is possible that he has a photographic memory, such as, when Mamori created hand signals for the two of them to communicate during games, he was able to memorize them in mere seconds. He's also been known to chew excessive amounts of sugarless gum, even during games, and likes to drink black coffee. After defeating the Bando Spiders and making it into the Kantou tournament (in the anime, it was several episodes after they beat Shinryuji Naga), Hiruma receives a phone call from his father, congratulating him. However, Hiruma contemptly hangs up and throws the phone in to the trash can. Mamori Anezaki, who was with him at the time, is the only other person to know about this. In the manga, when the Christmas Bowl begins, his father, Yuuya Hiruma, comes and buys a ticket, though it is unknown to the Devil Bats. An interesting fact is, though it is very faint, Hiruma has the tendency to make Sena somehow in charge of everything, such as the time where he decided that Sena should be the replacement quarterback (manga only), or the time he put Sena in charge of the team during a dinner cruise (anime only). This may be because he wants Sena to learn about leadership, so that he will be able to become captain. Story vs. Hiruma]] As revealed in chapter 248, Hiruma initially wasn't interested in football when he was 10, but later became intrigued when he saw it being played by some soldiers on a military base. He immediately caught on to its rules and later started studying on its tactics in order to gamble on the winning teams. At that point, he had not yet committed himself to actually playing the game until he was discovered by Kurita in junior high. This chapter also revealed that Hiruma lives on his own and that his parents are in jail for stock fraud. However, this too is a deception, saying "They're not audacious enough for that." The next chapter, Hiruma reveals that his father was a low ranked Shogi player, who just collected losses without regret until he quit. This too was revealed to be a lie, which leaves Kurita wondering what his father was really like. As of Chapter 280, a person named Yuuya Hiruma arrives at the Christmas Bowl to watch, but it has yet to be seen who this person is or if they are related to Hiruma at all. Nothing was mentioned about his mother. Hiruma has a history with Agon Kongo of the Shinryuji team and is one of the very few people that can get under his skin. It was said in chapter 170 that they "used" each other to get what they wanted (Hiruma can easily threaten people he wants to blackmail, Agon can trash anyone he wants and can flirt with girls for it). It was revealed that Kurita, Musashi, and even Hiruma himself wanted to enter the Shinryuji Nagas when they were still in junior high, and eventually qualified. Kurita passed because he was recommended by a sports club, but because Agon disliked people without perfect talent, he entered the sports clubs' test, and Kurita was forced to leave Shinryuji. It was then that the three of them, Hiruma, Kurita, and Musashi decided to come Deimon--since it was the only school Kurita managed to get into by passing the normal entrance test--forcing the Devil Bats to start from scratch on a high school that had no football club of its own. Due to their history, Hiruma knows Agon's weakness and plans on using his arrogance to cause his downfall. During the 2nd half of the match against the Nagas, Hiruma proves this statement by using a combination of trickery, and sheer determination; this includes option-route passes to Yukimitsu, the Bats' weakest but most determined player, and a fake spike (used in the NFL by legendary Dolphins passer Dan Marino against the New York Jets). Deimon's quarterback gets his own personal revenge against Agon by scoring Deimon's fifth touchdown, despite being chased by him, and eventually the Bats win the match. In the next game, a rematch against Ojo, he is forced to consistently change his plans in order to find his way around the many obstacles presented by this rival, including their unstoppable defense, their "perfect player" Shin, and the cold, calculating methods of opposing quarterback Ichiro Takami. As Deimon falls behind, Hiruma chooses to switch to a running game to move the ball down the field and at least score with field goals, but he eventually decides to hold off Ojo for the remainder of the first half. By the second half, Hiruma switched tactics with an all-passing method taking advantage of Monta's abilities to sense the movement of the ball until Sena gains the confidence to fight back against Shin and reopens the rushing option. Using all of the players to his advantage, he allows Deimon to get the ball back with one second remaining, where he gambles everything on Sena's ultimate victory against Shin and defeating their greatest of rivals. Hiruma next was forced to play against the Hakushuu Dinosaurs, infamous for their manipulative quarterback Marco and their monsterous defensive lineman Rikiya Gaō, known already in the tournament as a quarterback killer (including destroying Hiruma's respected rival Kid). Although initially slightly worried about the threat of the Dinosaurs, a combination attack by both Gaō and Kisaragi (who didn't know much about his part in the play - Gaō piled straight through him) debilitated him and made his right arm break in two places. Hiruma once again puts his faith in Sena (forced to play as a temporary quarterback) and the awakening defensive power of Kurita, but Marco's mental and physical skills as a quarterback forced Hiruma back in the game, stuck as a "standing" quarterback as opposed to a rushing one and not completely healed from Gaō's attack. Slowly wearing away at Marco's cool demeanor and using Sena, Monta and an awakened Kurita to his advantage, Hiruma used all the tricks he could, including a "double quarterback" drive similar to Shinryuji's strategies and rushing in the final two-point conversion to defeat the Dinosaurs and finally achieve his dream of reaching the Christmas Bowl. Currently, Hiruma is using an oxygen capsule to recover from the fracture. Humorously, he attaches the capsule to a segway to provide him with a means to move around while healing. To prepare for the upcoming battle against Teikoku, an all-star team and the country's strongest empire, he gathers Kanto's best players, creating Kanto's strongest army, so that Deimon can train with them. In the end of chapter 280 (280th Down), the day of the Christmas Bowl (25th of December) has arrived. Hiruma currently has his cast on, and it's unknown if he'll play in the Christmas Bowl after sustaining the injury from the last match. He has continued with his strategy of psychological warfare, though, attempting to appeal to an opposing player's ethics by saying that he promised to participate in the match no matter how severe the injury. It is confirmed in the first play against the Teikoku Alexanders that Hiruma has completely recovered from his injuries, though it appears that his control is slightly off. However, it seems that Monta can cover this weakness using his improved jump.... until Taka intercepted the ball (to add injury, in graceful manner) and giving it to Yamato, resulted in counter touchdown. He calmly commented to this that Taka's abilities was not human. Following this, Teikoku continued with an onside kick, in aim to get consecutive offense. They made it, and for the first time, the only girl in tournament, Koizumi Karin, appears to face Hiruma in a brain battle. Followed the next touchdown by Karin's Floral Pass and Yamato's Caesar Charge, now Deimon is on offensive. Hiruma, Sena and Monta decided to go with Christ Cross play, with resulted... a complete mess. As the ball being fumbled thanks to their inexperince, The Teikoku going for the ball, with Achilles and Heracles performing stunts to block Kurita and going for the ball, simultaneously. Achilles manages to get the ball... but Ha Ha Brothers intervened in the last time, saves the ball from being downed and batted the ball out of Teikoku possessions. Hiruma secured the ball in the last moment, and ready for the long pass... or that what he wished, because he can't do the forward pass since the ball is already in Teikoku possessions before. However, Taka had acknowledged the threat Hiruma and Monta had, and Hiruma, also realizes this, planned to betting everything on pass, within 10 minutes.... Within 10 minutes, Hiruma recklessly thrown Hail Mary Passes, without regards of Teikoku's player abilities. In other side, other Alexander players showing their capabilities by scoring 2 more touchdowns, increase their superiority into 28-0. While it was seen as desperate attempts to score, it is revealed that Hiruma actually decided to burns that 10 minutes, to put Monta and Taka into staring contest, putting pressure on Taka as well as giving Monta chances to defeat Taka. Later, Taka, cannot cope with pressure given by Monta, is losing his cool and decided to turn away first, giving Monta chance he needed to catch Hiruma's pass... until Taka, in last moment, manages to intercept the ball by stripping the ball using one finger, and recover the fumbled ball. The rest of 2nd half is complete devastation of Devilbats, as Yamato's prediction of 42-0 come into perfection. As last quarter arrived, the team is left at 42-0 and only 9 minutes remaining on clock. However, Ha-Ha brothers is shouting protest at the last moment.... Techniques and Strategies Of the myriad of weapons at Hiruma's disposal, possibly the most devastating of all is his steel-trap mind. An expert strategist with a clever and cunning demeanor, he is a force to be reckoned with, both on and off the field. Hiruma has clearly been using a slow-play strategy in regard to Yukimitsu's place in the team, even as far back as the tryouts at Tokyo Tower, which paid off huge dividends in the Shinryūji game when he scored the Bats' first points against the Nagas. He can also think up to 17 strategies quickly, no matter the scenario, and even if he is under harsh conditions, he manages to stay focused. His game plays can be considered insane at times, but there is no mistaking the results in scoring points and upsetting the other team's strategies. He is very adaptable in passing, catching and blocking, and dodging sacks, making him a well-rounded quarterback. According to Takami of the Ojo team, Hiruma wasn't really physically cut out to play quarterback (this fact was also once brought up by Musashi), but he willed himself into it, using his drive and cunning mind to become the Devilbats' "Hidden Ace." The following are Hiruma's techniques and/or abilities: *'Devil's Handbook' - Not really part of the arsenal he uses on the field, though one can say that it's his most potent weapon, aside from his cunning mind. At the beginning of the series, he uses it to force students from other clubs to become support players for the football team. This book is not limited to the secrets of students and teachers at Deimon; Hiruma has been known to blackmail city officials, work crews and storekeepers (in one case he even used it to commandeer a JSDF tank). Later, it was revealed that he first created the handbook as a way to blackmail Maou principal to acknowledge their wishes to create an American Football team, since he won't let them create a new club with only three active members. *'Psychological warfare' - He uses rumors, bluffs and threats at games to unnerve the opposing teams, and even to bolster morale among his own teammates. His most famous one is making Sena the legendary running back from Notre Dame, Eyeshield 21. He even use spectators to cheer to the team as distraction, while he is busy creating a play. He will also not hesitate to make a play that seems against common sense (do a run play when there's chance to pass, and vice versa, blitzing a quarterback that is near impossible to get to, putting a weaker player as receiver and key player, etc) or considered to be extreme. He has even been known to use tactics that are an enormous gamble, but tend to end in success. In chapter 282, he made everyone pretend to be scared and run away, only for the play to turn in to a Killer Hornet. *'Play Action (Fake Handoff)' - Hiruma is a master of making the football disappear from sight, fooling Shin in chapter 229, and even TV cameras. This is very useful in making the team block the wrong way and for surprise attacks. *'Wishbone' - A formation which uses 3 Running Backs behind him. Hiruma has the option of handing the ball off to one Running Back, fake and hand it off to another, or running it himself, then lateral the ball to someone else. At the same time, the one he fakes handing the ball to, blocks ahead of the true carrier. Due to Hiruma's ability to instantly choose who would receive the ball, and who would block for the receiver, makes this strategy extremely adaptable. Opposing teams have great difficulty defending against three running patterns at once. But later when it was found that Wishbone's flaw was that the other team was able to lure and choose which player the ball is being handed to. To counter this, a Short Pass was added into the formation making the strategy more complete, and give the opposing team even more to worry about, (ie: defending against a pass or run). *'Air Option' - Not named such, but very similar with. By adding Yukimitsu as additional Wide Receiver, and employ Natsuhiko Taki's abilities to catch, he can freely choose how he's going to pass; to Monta, who can catch any fast and powerful pass, to Yukimitsu, who can read enemies defense's weak points and make use of it, or to Taki, who his build and flexibility help him in catching the ball in area crowded by enemy players. See Yukimitsu entry about Option Route. *'Devil Laser Bullet' - Hiruma's signature pass; Hiruma puts an incredibly tight spiral on the ball, which can enable it to slice through even harsh winds. Unlike a normal pass in which the ball travels in an arc, this technique causes the ball to shoot through the air in a straight line with pinpoint accuracy. Because of the spartanic, brutal nature of this pass, he only used it after raimon Tarou appears; the master of catching who can catch even the most brutal pass. *'Hail Devil Pass' - A very fast, long and low bullet pass, similar with his Devil Laser Bullet. One might think of it as the opposite to the more common Hail Mary pass. As Hiruma said, "Devils don't ask favors from Gods", this kind of pass (because of its speed and accuracy) didn't rely on luck, but more to the receiver's catching abilities. *'In-motion' - Before the actual play begins, a single player behind scrimmage can move anywhere as long as it's behind scrimmage and not going forward. This was useful for trick play and confusing enemies.He first use Yukimitsu to push along Nagas' line (thanks to him, they win in numbers and able to break the linemen formation, enable frontal rushing),and second time when he fooling the Nagas into believing that he was used as decoy (agitating the fans), when in reality it was an in-motion, enables Sena to do a frontal rush, inviting Naga's defense. But in actuality it was the true trap; When the Naga's defense got lured by Sena's run, he laterals the ball toward Hiruma, who run unhindered, enable him to get a final touchdown for Devilbats. *'Sign Language' - Hiruma ordered Mamori to provide some kind of secret code he can use to communicate with the sideline after the game with Kyoshin Poseidon. Mamori made the hand-signs and brought the code book. Hiruma grabbed her book, memorized it (in seconds) and then burned it. Unlike the codes other teams use to communcate, the signs Mamori sends are longer than usual and described as "telling a long story" by Wakana in 16th book. *'Zone Blitz' - Taking advantage of quarterback's speed who can pass in short response but easily read, this tactic is used against Seibu's quarterback, Mushakonoji "Kid" Shien, who is known for his fast-lightning Quickdraw Pass. When a linebacker (Kuroki) trying to blitz him, lineman (Kurita) will quickly (and silently) moving backward, to the place of the expected ball receiver. Because of the Kurita's build, it's near impossible to tackle or intercept him, so the pass will likely intercepted, and because of the pass response speed, it's almost impossible to change the direction of the pass to the other receiver. To ensure the success, Hiruma especially ordered the team to blitz Kid like crazy until they nearly got pressed near the goal line. However, in time, Kid realizes what Hiruma attempt to do, and instead faking the pass and run the ball on his own. Hiruma trying to stop him (the only one realized what happened) but failed. Later, Kid said that that trick play is "almost got him". *'Play Action (Fake TFP Kick)' - While holding the ball for TFP kick, when the kicker (Musashi) goes in, instead put the ball in place, he pass it or advanced the ball on his own for 2 point conversion. First used by Kid, he adapt it and use it against Seibu at first. Later, combined with Sky Devilbat Dive, this play became instrumental in scores 2 point conversion against Nagas. *'Onside Kick' - Hiruma kicks the ball at an angle and a shorter distance than usual in order for his teammates to try to regain possession of the ball. He used this tactic in his final play against the Seibu Wild Gunmen, which ultimately failed, and once again against the Shinryuuji Nagas, (with Musashi kicking this time), and succeeding. Like Monta is with throwing, Hiruma's kicking ability is abysmal and the direction in which the ball goes is purely up to chance. *'Spike' - Hiruma purposely discard pass chance after successful advances, effectively stops time and discarding one down. He done this as means to stops time and ensure the team had enough time to advances the ball from their own Red Zone to enemies goalzone, with only 1 minutes left on the clock. To do this, after successful advances,the team must quickly resemble their formation before Hiruma can make the pass discard. If done correctly, this can also useful to tricks the opposition.... *'Clock Play' - this is a direct tribute to an actual play from the 1994 NFL season, in which legendary Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino hoodwinked the entire New York Jets defense, winning the game by shouting two words: "Clock! Clock!". In their final drive against the Shinryūji Nagas, the Bats had one minute left to score. Hiruma marched the team down the field, spiking the ball on the next play following an advance to stop the clock. Getting Monta to act spaced-out for the critical play threw his marker, Nagas CB Ikkyu Hosokawa, making him think there was going to be another spike. No such luck - Hiruma took the snap, and faked a spike; Monta got the split-second jump on Ikkyu he was after and hared off down the pitch. Hiruma then heaved a massive pass downfield for Monta. And he almost gain touchdown... before Agon stops him in the Red Zone and nearly annihilated Deimon's chance to go to the Christmas Bowl.... *'Shotgun' - This is exactly the same tactic used by the Seibu Wild Gunmen in which all eligible receivers are deployed. This is used against the Ojo White Knights in the Kantou Tournament - to a less than dazzling effect, going five-and-out against the crushing Ojo Defense. *'Devil Backfire' - Taking advantage of Monta's highly-developed catching ability, Hiruma passes long bombs to the receiver, in which Monta grabs from behind his head. Due to all the times they've practiced together, Hiruma can pitch any long pass to Monta with 100% success rate. Also see Monta's entry. *'Devils Hound' - While not used on the field, Hiruma takes a hair of someone's head (when that person is missing) and shows it to Cerberus, who bolts off to find the target/victim and drag him back. It has been used against Sena when Hiruma thought he was running away from their first games against Ojo and when Sena took the wrong bus on the first game against the Cyborgs. *'Death Card' - The exact strategy is not explained in ch. 231, but apparently, it involves using both Sena and Monta in a feint to make it look like they were going to double cover Sakuraba, but then has Sena break off to blitz Takami. Shin then comes back to stop Sena, leaving Sakuruba. With Shin now out of the way, Monta breaks away to blitz Takami. This is a high-risk maneuver since it leaves Sakuraba open to receive a pass with no one covering him. The play in question unfolds in a theatre of cat-and-mouse, bluff and counter-bluff, between Hiruma and Takami, before Monta has the last say in the matter - tackling the Knights passer in his own endzone for a safety. *'Killer Hornet' - A strategy created by Hiruma in the last play against the White Knights: Hiruma called Taki, Monta, and Sena to immediately huddle up with him when Monta was faced with an oncoming rush of defenders after catching the kickoff. This hides the ball from view and prevents the opposing team from seeing who is carrying it. Each player then suddenly explodes forward with each looking like he was holding the ball. This confuses the defense of the White Knights, making them hesitate for less than a split second, but that's long enough to create an opening for Sena. The same tactic was used to confuse Alexander's player in their first kickoff return, only this time, the ball carrier is Ishimaru. This has been seen in a real game - if not in the pros, then certainly in a college football game. *'The Lonely Center' - A trick play which has only Kurita defending in front of Hiruma while the other members of the Devil Bats are positioned to the left. This tricks the Dinosaurs into using just Gao to break through the line, instead of the normal 4 to 5 linemen. With Gao preoccupied, Hiruma is given the time needed to throw any pass he wants. Furthermore, the strategy is also used as bait to get the opposing linemen to rush Hiruma from the empty side, which leaves the rest of the field open for a lateral to Sena. However, if the center gets too occupied and loses his balance, the quarterback becomes defenseless and may easily be crushed. *'Quarterback Draw' - Basically, this trickplay is a mind game, where he uses many receivers (Sena, Yukimitsu, Monta, Natsuhiko) to cover all the field, pretending that he will pass to them (even yelling "4x DEVIL LASER BULLET!!" to fool his opponent). Instead of passing, the moment he yells, he runs to the side and carries the ball alone. He uses this technique to test Marco's capability, and true to his expectations, Marco is more than capable of stealing the ball right away. However, the moment Marco stole the ball, Hiruma purposely put his feet off the field, forcing an out of bounds and ensuring Deimon's possession of the ball. *'Play Action (Pass Fake/ QB Decoy)' - Unlike the Play Action/Fake Handoff he usually engages in, Hiruma has three receivers, (Monta, Taki and Sena), gather to his left in a tri-formation. This makes the opposing team believe that he will pass the ball to the left after the play begins. However, instead of Hiruma, Kurita hikes the ball past him to Sena, while Monta, Taki and the others clear a path for Sena to run. Since the opponent will be concentrating on stopping a pass, this gives the Devil Bats more space to open up the defensive line. *'The Gargoyle' - This is purely an intimidation tactic in which Hiruma basically does nothing on the field, but his very presence causes the Dinosaurs to make several errors and forces them to punt. However, this is also to hide the fact that he can only make one final long pass to Monta before his right arm becomes completely useless. *'Defensive Switch' - This is Hiruma's version of the Dinosaurs' tactic of using strength to crush an opponent. Using his injured body as bait, Hiruma simply waited for Marco charge in with the intent to take out the Devil Bats' captain permanently. At the same time, Kurita switches positions with Komosubi. Marco then finds himself up against the massive center with the intent of crushing him! *'Devil Dragon Fly' - This is a variation off of the Shinryūji Naga's Kongo Brother's Dragon Fly by making both Sena and Hiruma act as two quarterbacks like Unsui and Agon. By using unexpected laterals and fake-hand-off tricks deployed by Hiruma, they manages to confuse the Hakushuu to gain the first down, but not enough to get the touchdown. The reason they able to do this due to all the physical and mental trainings they going through, they manages to work in synch perfectly to executate any trick plays Hiruma had in mind. *'Christ Cross' - Another variation of Wishbone, where Monta and Sena cross paths with Quarterback (Hiruma) as their center. This will hide the true ball carrier, however due to Sena and Monta's initial inexperience with the play as well as never having used it before, their first use of the Christ Cross results in a fumble with the ball almost being stolen by Teikoku. *'Hail Mary Pass' -is a very long forward pass thrown near the end of a half or end of a game where there is no possibility for any other play to score points. This play is unlikely to be successful, because of the general inaccuracy of the pass and the defensive team's preparedness for the play makes it likely that it can intercept or knock down the ball. Sources *Various Eyeshield 21 manga chapters (character guides) and anime episodes. References Category:Fictional football players Category:Eyeshield 21 Category:Eyeshield 21 characters Category:Japanese anime and manga characters es:Yōichi Hiruma